Odegaard: We Did Everything We Could, But Lacked Luck

Norway captain Martin Odegaard expressed his disappointment following the 2-1 defeat to England after extra time in the quarter-finals of the 2026 World Cup, stating that his team was very close to achieving a historic feat.

Odegaard said in post-match comments: "It's very tough. I feel we were very close. We did everything we could, and maybe we sat back defensively in the first half, but England didn't create much and we took the lead."

He added: "We conceded two easy goals, and we didn't get much help from the referee. The small details didn't go our way, and we lacked some luck."

Despite the exit, the Arsenal star praised Norway's journey, saying: "It was a fantastic tournament and a fairy tale for us. We can be proud of ourselves. The whole world is talking about Norway now, and reaching the quarter-finals of the World Cup is a huge achievement."

He continued: "Now that we've tasted this level, we need to keep building for the future."

Regarding the controversy over the ball touching the overhead camera cable before Jude Bellingham's equalizer, he said: "I didn't see the incident myself, but the margins didn't go our way today on some decisions, and you might need those details to win matches like this."

He concluded his remarks about the foul called on Erling Haaland during the corner that led to the disallowed second goal by Torbjorn Heggem, saying: "I didn't see that incident either, but once again, the margins didn't go our way."